A modern wireless device can incorporate functions of a satellite positioning system receiver, a cellular transceiver, or a wireless transceiver. When a wireless device functions as a cellular transceiver and/or a wireless transceiver, the device can communicate wirelessly with a wireless communication network by employing radio frequency (RF) field propagation. The radio frequency, a frequency within the electromagnetic spectrum associated with radio wave propagation, is supplied to an antenna that creates an electromagnetic field that propagates through space. A component of a wireless communication network can be a wireless station, for example, a cellular base station of a cellular network, or an access point of a wireless local area network (LAN) or a wireless personal area network (PAN). The wireless station can allow a wireless device to communicate with a wired network through an access gateway. Oftentimes, the wireless station broadcasts a beacon signal that provides key information for wireless connections with wireless devices.